Method of forming expanded metal.



W. H. ACOOLEY.

METHOD 0F FORMING EXPANDED METAL.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 2, 1909.

Z SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Patented Dec. 7, 1909.

INVENTUR':

N my n MLM@ W. H. GOOLEY.

METHOD 0F FORMING EXIPANDED METAL.

I APPLICATION FILED JAN. Z, 1909. 942,309.

Patented Dec. 7, 1909.-

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WILLIAM Hi COOLEY, F BROCKPOBT, NEW YQBK.

I To all whom 'it may concern:

unrnon or romano Exeem-inn METAL.

Be yit known that I, WImaAM CooL'EY, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Brockport, in the county yof Monroe vand State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Method of Forming Expanded Metal, of which the following is a specification. t

The object of my resent invention is to provide a method o forming metal which shall necessitate a minimum number .of ste s and amount of handling of the metal and In practicing which the metal may be expanded substantially without stretching the same. l In carrying out my invention, I first form a series of alternately interrupted cuts in the metal and simultaneously bend the continuously extending stri s between the series of alined cuts to uni ormly shorten the metal in the direction of the cuts to permit the expansion of the metal by engaging the same at keys or series of polnts on the opposite sides of the cuts and forcing such keys or points relatively apart in substantially stralght lines in substantially parallel planes. It is immaterial for the purpose of my resent invention-whether the cutting means or forming the interrupted cuts and simultaneously lshortening the sheet in the direction of the cuts, as well as also the expanding mechanism, be of the reciprocating or of the. rotary. character, although the latter only is shown in the accompanying drawings illustrating diagrammatically means for practicing my method of forming expanded metal.

Such drawings are as follows .Figure 1 is a side view of a partl of the coperating portion of the cutting and shortening mechanism with a sheet o" the metal shown as being operated on thereby, a portion of the sheet being shown as having been cut and shortened. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of parts or the mechanism seen. in Fig.

1 and taken along thedotted line -y of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is aside view of `the cutting and feeding rollers witha part of the end disks of the cutting rollers next to the observerremoved. Fig. 4 shows ay plan view of a portion of a sheet of metal after having been operated upon by the cutting and corrugating mechanism. Fig. 5 is a plan view of the means for holding the cut and shortened metal and shows in planviewa portion of the metal as havingbeen expandy Speoioation of Letters Patent. i lappnmmon med January 2, 1909. smal no. 4mes?.

l 'Patented Dec.. 7, 1909.`

' ed. `Fig. 6 is a dia ammatical side view of the expanding mec anism.

Simllar characters refer to similar parts throu ho ut the several drawings.

Re errmg. to Figs. 1, 2, and 3,-the sheet of metal m to be cut and'shortened is -fed from left to rightthrough the machineand engaged first by the feed rollers F and FL and'advanced thereby into engagement with and between thecutting rollers C and C1.

-The cuttingrollers C and C1, as indicated in Figs. A1, 2, and'3, to which reference is I Iow made, are built up of cutting disks arranged and coperating as follows Starting at the end of the rollers toward the observer in Figs. land 3, being the left hand end in Fig. 2,the upper roller comprises @a series of plain disks a spaced apart by a distance equaling substantially thrice their thickness. The lower roller comprises similarly a series of plain disks al spaced apart by substantially a distance equaling thrice their thickness. Between each two adjacent disks a are located, starting at the left, first a cutter c and then a spacing disk l and then another cutter 0, while similarly between each two adjacent disks al are located, first a cutter @Pand then a-spacing disk Z1 and then a cutter 0], these disksand cutters being so spaced and located on their respective shafts that two cutter disks on one shaft with -a plain disk between them enga e between two`plain disks on the other sha tand opposite each plain disk on one shaft is located a spacing disk on the other shaft. The plain disks are ofsuch'a diameter that they overlap each other at their peripheries by substantially just twice that amount which the metal is to be displaced from the initial lplane thereof at the deepest points in the larly that the maximum diameter of a cutter c comes opposite a point midway between two adjacent points of maximum diameter i formed substantially as shown in Figs. 1, 2,

and 3. The cutter disks of one cutting roller Fig. 1 and more fully described as. fol-- lows :-The plain disks a force downwardly from the initial plane of the metal strips 1, the width of each of which is. substantlally the thickness of such plain disks andthe plain disks a1 force upwardly from the initial plane of the metal strips 3, the width of each of which is substantially the thickness of such plain disks al and between such of such strips of the metal forceddownwardly below its initial lane and the adjacent strips forced upwar ly from the initial plane of the metal there are formed a series of connecting bars 2 and 4, joined to the upper strips and to the lower strips at points denominated keys or bonds in the cut and expanded metal. Each coperating pair of cutters c and c1 is arranged to leave uncut portions or bonds in the metal between or opposite the centers of the cuts formed by an adjacent coperatingpair of such cutters, as indicated dia rammaticall in Fig. 4. The result of this 1s that there 1s formed in the cut metal series of strips 1 extending continuously below the initial plane of the metal and series of strips 3 extending continuously above the initial plane of the metal and such strips extending continuously above are connected to those strips extending continuously below by intermediate strips 2 and 4 of equal width connected to such first named strips at alternating oints, as indicated in edge view in Fig. 1. y the operation of the cutting and shortening rolls the sheet of metal lm, in passing through and being operated upon thereby assumes the conformation indicated in Fig. 1 and is thus shortened in the direction of the cuts by an amount suicient to permit the expansion of the metal, in the manner to be hereinafter described, without a further shortening and substantially without stretching the metal.

Referring now to Figs. 5and 6, after the sheet has been cut and shortened in the way described it is placed between the two guiding members h and h1 with the cuts horizontally arranged. The metal m1 rests upon a guiding or supporting plate R, which has attached thereto a cord 1, such cord extending over the pulley O having bearings for its supporting shaft in the ears o carrled by the plate h. The cord 1' is attached to the weight W which operates to force the cut and shortened sheet of metal m1 up against the Series of fingers, one of which 1s seen in Fig. 6 at p, in such a way as to be engaged by the teeth b on a series of expandin dlsks B supported on the shaft S. These Iisks B The result of this arrangement isv gaed by the series of expanding disks B an are spaced apart by collars U so that they will engage keys in the rows marked e-e in Fig. 5, showing a part of the expanded metal inplan view and a plan view of the metal from which it is being expanded. These teeth b are spaced such a distance apart on the disks B that they engage only every other key in the rows e--e. To the rear, or to right in Fig. 6, of the series of disks B are seen two series of disks T and T1 similarly supported upon shafts S1 and S2 res ectively. The dlsks T are spaced intermeiate of the disks B and the teeth thereon are arranged to engage every key in each of the rows ff as seen in Fig. 5, while the disks T1 are spaced and positioned to engage every key in the rows e-e and are hence to.

the rear of and in alinement with the corresponding disks B. The metal asy it is en- T T1 is drawn to the right upon the bed piece P, the space between the upper side of i which and the bodies of the disks T and T1,

between the engaging teeth thereon, is such that the keys passing under these disks T and T1 are mclmed over to the right to give to the keys an appreciable inclination re1- ative to the plane of the bed piece P and the expanded metal m2 thereon. The series of disks B, T and T1 are driven at substantially the same peripheral speed. The teeth b on the disks B 1t will be noted engage every other key in the rows e-e, that 1s, those keys which are to the right or next to the guiding plate h1, while every intermediate one of such keys in the rows e-e contacts with or lies a ainst the guide plate it. In the same way t e keys in the row f-f lie alternately against the plate h and the plate h1, but the keys in such row e-le are advanced by the teeth b so as to be roperly an amount suiicient to permit t e desiredexpansion of the sheet without a further shortening of the sheet and substantially without stretchingthe metal.

What I claim is:

1. The improved method of forming expanded metal which consists in forming alternatingly interrupted series of cuts in the metal to leave alternating keys between the cuts at their interruptions and simultaneously bendin the strlps extending longitudinally of an between the cuts to uniformly shorten the sheet in the direction of the cuts to permit the expansion of the sheet substantially without a further shortening of the sheet in the direction of the cuts and substantially without stretching the metal,

and drawing points correspondingly located on opposite sldes of and relatively to the cuts, in the metal thus prepared, without a further intermediate corrugating or treatment, apart in substantially straight and parallel lines substantially without stretchlng the metalv and substantially Without shortening the metal in the ldirection of the cuts. 2. The improved method of forming expanded metal which consists informing alternatingly interrupted series of cuts in the metal to leave alternating keys between the cuts at their interruptions and simultaneously bending the strips extending longitudinally of and between the cuts to shorten the sheet in the direction of the cuts to per-h mit the ex ansion of the sheet substantially without 'a rther shortening of the sheet in the direction of the cuts and substantially without stretchin the metal and drawing points correspon mgly located on opposite sides of and relatively to the cuts in the metal thus prepared, without a further intermediate corrugating or treatment, apart in substantially straight and parallel llnes substantially without stretching the metal and substantially without shortening the metal in the direction of the cuts.

WM. H. COOLEY.

Witnesses:

OsBoRNE F. GURNEY, LOUISE FREY. 

